The Psychology Of Materialism, And Why It's

Making You Unhappy

The Huffington Post | By Carolyn Gregoire Posted: 12/15/2013 10:00 am EST

More money, more problems? It might just be true. Americans today, compared to 55 years
ago, own twice as many cars and eat out twice as much per person, but we don't seem to be
any happier because of it. Rather than rising levels of well-being, we've seen mounting
credit card debt and increasing numbers of self-storage facilities to house the things we
compulsively buy.
The holidays in particular have become a time when consumer culture comes out in full
force. Black Friday, the annual post-Thanksgiving discount shopping spree, results each
year in multiple deaths and injuries of consumers trampled by crowds in stores and
shopping malls.
In a poignant, viral Huffington Post blog last month, "If You Shop On Thanksgiving, You're
Part Of The Problem," writer Matt Walsh cast a harsh light on what the holiday shopping
frenzy really says about our culture:
That's our entire economic system: buy things. Everybody buy. It doesn't matter what you
buy. Just buy. It doesn't matter if you don't have money. Just buy. Our entire civilization
now rests on the assumption that, no matter what else happens, we will all continue to buy
lots and lots of things. Buy, buy, buy, buy, buy. And then buy a little more. Don't create, or

produce, or discover -- just buy. Never save, never invest, never cut back -- just buy. Buy
what you don't need with money you don't have... Buy like you breathe, only more
frequently.
To some extent, most of us participate in consumer culture and value material possessions,
and that's perfectly fine. But in excess, materialism can take a toll on your well-being,
relationships and quality of life. Here are six things you should know about the
psychology of consumption -- and strategies to find freedom from materialism.
Consumer culture may be harming individual well-being.

Research suggests that Americans' well-being has, if anything, declined since the
1950s, according to the American Psychological Association, while our consumption has
only increased.
"Compared with their grandparents, today's young adults have grown up with much more
affluence, slightly less happiness and much greater risk of depression and assorted social
pathology," David G. Myers, author of The American Paradox: Spiritual Hunger in an Age of
Plenty, wrote in an American Psychologist article. "Our becoming much better off over the
last four decades has not been accompanied by one iota of increased subjective well-being."
The materialistic values that consumer cultures support may be to blame. Those who pursue
wealth and material possessions tend to be less satisfied and experience fewer positive
emotions each day. On the other hand, research has found that life satisfaction -- surprise,
surprise -- is correlated with having less materialistic values.

Materialist values are linked to Type-A behavior.

Are you highly ambitious and competitive? It could mean you're also more materialistic.
Australian research from the 1990s found materialist values and a possessions-based
definition of success share common characteristics with type-A behaviors, including
competitiveness and aggression. A 2008 study published in the Journal of Pacific Rim
Psychology reiterated the finding that the desire to accumulate wealth and possessions is
related to Type-A qualities.
Money really can't buy you happiness.

The Beatles wisely noted that money can't buy love, and we'd do well to remember that
money can't buy happiness, either. Research has shown that there is no direct correlation
between income and happiness. Once our basic needs are met, wealth makes very little
difference to one's overall well-being and happiness. And in fact, extremely wealthy people
actually suffer from higher rates of depression.
The failure of additional wealth and consumption to help people have satisfying lives may
be the most eloquent argument for reevaluating our current approach to consumption, the
authors of Worldwatch Institute's 2011 State of Consumption report wrote.
Some data, however, has suggested that there could be a link between higher income and
increased life satisfaction. It seems that it may not be the money itself that leads to
dissatisfaction, but rather, the continual striving for greater wealth and more possessions
that is linked to unhappiness.
Materialism could ruin your relationships.

Can money buy you love? Not so much, and according to a study published in the Journal Of
Couple & Marriage Therapy, materialism is actually correlated with unhappiness in
marriages. Researchers studied more than 1,700 couples to find that those in which both
partners had high levels of materialism exhibited lower marital quality than couples with
lower materialism scores. Previous studies have found that students with higher extrinsic,

materialistic values tend to have lower-quality relationships, and to feel less connected to
others.
Materialistic people also typically have less pro-social and empathetic qualities, both
towards others and towards the environment.
Consumer cultures may breed narcissistic personalities.

Some psychologists have suggested that consumer cultures may contribute to the
development of narcissistic personalities and behaviors, "by focusing individuals on the
glorification of consumption," psychologist Tim Kasser wrote in The High Price Of
Materialism. Narcissists generally act with arrogance and are deeply concerned with issues
of personal adequacy, seeking power and prestige to cover for feelings of inner emptiness
and low-self worth, Kasser explains.
"Narcissists' desire for external validation fits well with our conception of materialistic
values as extrinsic and focused on others' praise," he writes. "Thus it was not surprising to
find that students with strong materialistic tendencies scored high on a standard measure of
narcissism, agreeing with statements such as 'I am more capable than other people' ... 'I
wish somebody would write my biography someday.'"
Consumerism is fueled by insecurity -- and remedied by mindfulness.

Research suggests that materialistic values are fueled by insecurity. A 2002 study published
in the journal Psychology and Marketing found that those who chronically doubt
themselves and their own self-worth tend to be more materialistic.
Consumerism -- which has been called a "modern religion" -- tends to capitalize on this
insecurity and use it to sell products.
"In a practical sense, consumerism is a belief system and culture that promotes consuming
as the path to self- and social improvement," Stephanie Kaza, University of Vermont
Environment Professor and Buddhism practitioner, wrote in Tricycle: The Buddhist Review.
"As a dominant cultural force, consumerism offers products to address every
dissatisfaction."
So what's the antidote? Mindfulness -- the focused awareness on the present moment,
which can be cultivated through meditation and contemplative practice -- may be an
effective remedy to empty or compulsive consumption. As beat writer and American
Buddhist thinker Allen Ginsberg put it in a 1966 letter to the Washington Post: "You own
twice as much rug if you're twice as aware of the rug."
Americans are redefining success beyond money and power.

Our collective definition of the American Dream is slowly starting to change from one of
materialism to a more purposeful idea of what it means to live the good life. According to
the 2013 LifeTwist study, only around one-quarter of Americans still believe that wealth
determines success.
"Dozens of the surveys findings reflect a new American notion of success, but perhaps none
more starkly than the sentiment that Americans ranked 'having a lot of money' 20th on a list
of 22 possible contributors to having a successful life," the LifeTwist Study's authors wrote
in a press release. "This sentiment mirrors the steadily rising trend ... that Americans are
increasingly placing greater priority on living a fulfilling life - in which being wealthy is not
the most significant factor."
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